Public Policy

Perhaps you’ve seen this: the 8th grade test from Bullitt County Schools in Kentucky, circa 1912. Here are a few questions the 8th graders were expected to be able to answer:
Define latitude and longitude
Locate the Erie Canal. Continue Reading...

What is Earth Day?
Earth Day is an annual event, celebrated on April 22, on which events are held worldwide to demonstrate support for environmental protection. It was first celebrated in 1970, the anniversary of what many consider the birth of the modern environmental movement. Continue Reading...

“Prison rape occupies a fairly odd space in our culture,” wrote Ezra Klein in 2008, bringing to the fore a subject that is still too often ignored. “It is, all at once, a cherished source of humor, a tacitly accepted form of punishment, and a broadly understood human rights abuse.”
We are justifiably outraged by the human rights abuses occurring in foreign lands. Continue Reading...

Life is harsh in Twin Branch, W. Va. Despite the wide availability of food stamps, government-subsidized health care and school lunches, life is very difficult for most of the people living there. Continue Reading...

While riding the subway in her hometown of Barcelona, Eliana Guerrero saw pickpockets steal a case of insulin from two elderly tourists. That crime motivated Guerrero to do something for help her city. Continue Reading...

Over the past 20 years or so the University of Michigan has been repeatedly attacked for being “racist” because the university is doing exactly what Dr. Martin Luther King wanted. The university is treating prospective and current students according to their characters and not their color. Continue Reading...

In an attempt to trap Jesus, some Pharisees and Herodians asked him, “Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?” In response, Jesus said,
“Why put me to the test? Continue Reading...

A failed charter school and someone looking to start a charter school in Kansas can only look to Kansas City, Mo., and wonder what impact high-performing public charter schools may have for kids in the state. Continue Reading...

[Note: ‘7 Figures’ is a new, occasional series highlighting data and information from a variety of surveys and reports.]
1. The average federal tax rate for all households (tax liabilities divided by income, including government transfer payments) before taxes is 18.1 percent. Continue Reading...